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submersible diaphragm sump pump failure

10-18-2009, 04:22 PM

Howdy All,

Had a real gully-washer here in Seattle yesterday. Went outside and immediatley noticed that the catch basin in our driveway was nearly overflowing. There is a Rigid submersible diaphragm pump at the bottom, hard-wired and plumbed to an outflow pipe leading out to the street gutter. House is only two years old and, up to this point, I've noticed no problems- - until yesterday. Sump pit is a good four feet plus deep, so it's extremely hard to actually get to the dang pump. Fortunately, a neighbor had a spare pump and that allowed me to stay ahead until the rain stopped. I got the basin as empty as possible (a LOT of muck down there- - shouldn't there be a cement pad at the bottom instead of just bare earth?), and when I put my hand on the rounded top of what I assume is the actual switch, it was very warm to the touch. Uh-oh- - I then noticed some modest bubbling from the last bit of water, and some- - wait for it- - smoke, which smelled suspiciously NOT organic, but more electrical. You know the smell. Clearly the pump was not working- - could it have been that the switch was mired in too much goo? How do I troubleshoot this? I can't make out the model number, though I CAN see that it is a Rigid product. Serial number is 2072. Thanks, anyone. David